Partnering game and method of playing same

ABSTRACT

A new partnering game and method of playing same for enabling male and female players to anonymously select a player of their liking and verify whether or not the selected player likes them in such manner that only a mutually self-selected male-female couple knows of the selection.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 10/940,389, filed Sep. 13, 2004, which is adivisional application of prior U.S. patent application Ser. No.09/881,653, entitled “Partnering Game and Method of Playing Same”, filedon Jun. 14, 2001, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,789,802.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to games and more particularly pertains toan improved partnering game and method of playing same for enabling maleand female players to anonymously select a player of their liking anddetermining whether or not the selected player likes them in such mannerthat only a mutually self-selected male-female couple knows of theselection. The present invention provides for improvements upon theinventor's partnering game disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,775,760.

2. Description of the Prior Art

The use of games is known in the prior art. The inventor knows of onlyhis U.S. Pat. No. 5,775,700, which discloses a partnering game in whichplayers anonymously select a player of their liking and a mutualselection is confirmed or denied anonymously. To play the game asdisclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,775,700, each of a plurality of male gameplayers is given a single game token from a first set of game tokenshaving a distinct indicia thereon and each of a plurality of female gameplayers is given a single game token having a distinct indicia thereonand each of a plurality of female game players is given a single gametoken having a distinct indicia thereon from a set of game tokens.

Each of the male game players and each of the female game players arealso given a numbered card key. Each male game player and each femalegame player then deposit their game token into a numbered token boxcorresponding to the numbered card key held by a game player of theopposite sex of their liking. Each male game player and each female gameplayer then retrieves the game tokens from their numbered token boxes bymeans of their numbered card key. Each male game player and each femalegame player then place each game token retrieved from the numbered tokenboxes into the token pocket having an indicia corresponding to theindicia on each retrieved game token and the indicia of the game tokenoriginally given to each male game player and each female game player.Any token pocket having two game tokens therein indicates a potentialpartnership.

In an improved version of the partnering game in accordance with thepresent invention, a first set of cards bearing indicia from a first setof indicia, a second set of cards bearing indicia from a second set ofindicia, and a third set of cards bearing indicia from a third set ofindicia are employed as hereinafter described to achieve the objects ofselecting a game player of the opposite sex of a game player's likingand confirming or denying a mutual selection or the existence of anadmirer.

In another preferred embodiment of the invention a fourth set of cardsbearing indicia from a fourth set of indicia, and a fifth set of cardsbearing indicia from a fifth set of indicia are employed to achieve theobjects of the partnering game. In these respects, the partnering gameand method of playing same according to the present inventionsubstantially departs from the partnering game of the prior art and inso doing fulfills the purposes of the present invention as defined bythe following objectives, disclosure, and claims.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a newpartnering game and method of playing same apparatus and method whichhas many of the advantages of the inventor's patented inventionmentioned heretofore and many novel features that result in a newpartnering game and method of playing same which is not anticipated,rendered obvious, suggested, or even implied by any of the prior artgames, either alone or in any combination thereof.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a newpartnering game and method of playing same, which may be easily andefficiently manufactured and marketed.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a newpartnering game and method of playing same, which is of a durable andreliable construction.

An even further object of the present invention is to provide a newpartnering game and method of playing same which is susceptible to a lowcost of manufacture with regard to both materials and labor, and whichaccordingly is thus susceptible to low prices of sale to the consumingpublic, thereby making such partnering game and method of playing sameeconomically available to the buying public.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a newpartnering game and method of playing same for enabling male and femaleplayers to anonymously select a player of their liking and determiningwhether or not the selected player likes them in such manner that only amutually self-selected male-female couple knows of the selection.

Still yet another object of the present invention is to provide a newpartnering game and method of playing same for enabling male and femaleplayers to determine the existence and number of admirers he or she has.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a newpartnering game and method of playing same for enabling male and femaleplayers to determine the overall attractiveness he or she has as seen bythe opposite sex.

In summary, the various aspects of the game, which will be described ingreater detail below, are as follows:

In one embodiment, the partnering game of the present inventioncomprises: a first set of playing cards having first indicia disposedupon a front side, the first indicia being from a first set of indicia;a second set of playing cards having second indicia disposed upon afront side, the second indicia being from a second set of indicia; athird set of playing cards having third indicia disposed upon a frontside, the third indicia being from a third set of indicia; and whereineach of the cards from the first set of playing cards, the second set ofplaying cards, and the third set of playing cards further comprises aback side having a design disposed thereon.

The game further may comprise a fourth set of playing cards having afirst indicia and a fourth indicia disposed upon a front side, thefourth indicia being from a fourth set of indicia; a fifth set ofplaying cards having a second indicia and a fourth indicia disposed upona front side.

In an alternative embodiment, the partnering game provides the frontside of each of the playing cards of the first and fourth sets ofplaying cards further comprise a top portion and a bottom portion, thefirst indicia being disposed in the top portion, and wherein the bottomportion further comprises a highlighting portion.

The partnering game may have the front side of each of the playing cardsof the second and fifth sets of playing cards further comprise a topportion and a bottom portion, the second indicia being disposed in thebottom portion, and wherein the top portion further comprises ahighlighting portion.

In another embodiment, the present invention is a method of playing apartnering game comprising the steps of:

providing a first set of playing cards having a first indicia disposedupon a front side, the first indicia being from a first set of indicia;

providing a second set of playing cards having a second indicia disposedupon a front side, the second indicia being from a second set ofindicia; providing a third set of playing cards having a third indiciadisposed upon a front side, the third indicia being from a third set ofindicia;

providing an identical design upon the back sides of each of the playingcards of the first, second, and third sets of playing cards;

distributing to each male player a card from the first set of playingcards and to each female player a card from the second set of playingcards; having each male and female player memorize the indicia disposedupon his card;

distributing to each male player a plurality of cards from the third setof playing cards equal in number to the number of female players playingthe game;

distributing to each female player a plurality of cards from the thirdset of playing cards equal in number to the number of male playersplaying the game;

having each player hold the distributed cards in such manner that theother players cannot see the front sides of the distributed cards;

having each male player select a female player of his liking and eachfemale player select a male player of her liking;

having each male player form a first card hand in such manner that whenthe cards in the first card hand are dealt to the female players, thecard from the first set of playing cards is dealt to the selected femaleplayer or a card from the third set of playing cards if no female isselected;

having each female player form a second card hand in such manner thatwhen the cards in the second card hand are dealt to the male players,the card from the second set of playing cards is dealt to the selectedmale player or a card from the third set of playing cards if no male isselected;

having each male player deal his first card hand to the female players;

having each female player deal her second card hand to the male players;

having each male player retrieve from his dealt hand any cards from thesecond set of playing cards;

having each female player retrieve from her dealt hand any cards fromthe first set of playing cards;

having each male player having at least one card from the second set ofplaying cards highlight in a front side highlighting portion of eachcard from the second set of playing cards his memorized indicia;

having each female player having at least one card from the first set ofplaying cards highlight in a front side highlighting portion of eachcard from the first set of playing cards her memorized indicia;

having each male or female player having no cards from either the secondor first sets of playing cards respectively bluff the highlighting ofhis or her memorized indicia upon a card from the third set of playingcards;

combining and shuffling all of the playing cards front side down;

removing the cards from the third set of playing cards from the shuffledcards;

sorting the shuffled cards to reveal any two cards having identicalindicia; and sorting the shuffled cards to reveal any card havingdissimilar indicia.

In another embodiment, the method of playing a partnering game comprisesthe steps of: providing a first set of playing cards having a firstindicia disposed upon a front side, the first indicia being from a firstset of indicia; providing a second set of playing cards having a secondindicia disposed upon a front side, the second indicia being from asecond set of indicia;

providing a third set of playing cards having a third indicia disposedupon a front side, the third indicia being from a third set of indicia;

providing a fourth set of playing cards having a first indicia and afourth indicia disposed upon a front side, the fourth indicia being froma fourth set of indicia;

providing a fifth set of playing cards having a second indicia and afourth indicia disposed upon a front side; the fourth indicia being froma fourth set of indicia;

providing an identical design upon the back sides of each of the playingcards of the first, second, third, fourth, and fifth set of playingcards;

selecting a play area;

positioning a plurality of players around the play area;

selecting a game host;

the host forming three decks of cards from the first, second, third,fourth and fifth set of playing cards, a first deck comprising the firstset of playing cards and the fourth set of playing cards arranged insuch manner that each card from the fourth set of playing cards ispositioned adjacent to the corresponding card from the first set ofplaying cards, a second deck comprising the second set of playing cardsand the fifth set of playing cards arranged in such manner that eachcard from the fifth set of playing cards is positioned adjacent to thecorresponding card from the second set of playing cards, and a thirddeck comprising the third set of playing cards;

dealing to each of a plurality of male players two corresponding cardsfrom the first deck first side down;

dealing to each of a plurality of female players two corresponding cardsfrom the second deck first side down;

dealing to each player a plurality of cards from the third deck equal tothe product of the number of male players and female players;

having each male player memorize the indicia of his card from the firstdeck;

having each female player memorize the indicia of her card from thesecond deck;

having each player hold the distributed cards in such manner that theother players cannot see the front sides of the distributed cards;

having each male player form a first card hand comprising one card fromthe first deck and a plurality of cards from the third deck, the numberof cards in the first card hand being equal to the number of femaleplayers plus one;

having each female player form a second card hand comprising one cardfrom the second deck and a plurality of cards from the third deck, thenumber of cards in the second card hand being equal to the number ofmale players plus one;

having each male player select a female player of his liking and eachfemale player select a male player of her liking;

having each male player position his card from the first deck in hisfirst card hand in such manner that when the cards in the first cardhand are dealt to the female players, the card from the first deck isdealt to the selected female player or a card from the third deck if nofemale is selected;

having each female player position her card from the second deck in hersecond card hand in such manner that when the cards in the second cardhand are dealt to the male players, the card from the second deck isdealt to the selected male player or a card from the third deck if nomale is selected;

having each male player deal his first card hand to the female players;

having each female player deal her second card hand to the male players;

each male player giving his card from the fourth set from the first deckto the host and each female player giving her card from the fifth setfrom the second deck to the host to form a heading deck;

the host shuffling and arranging the heading deck in such manner thatthe cards from the first deck correspond to the headings of a pluralityof columns of a matrix and the cards from the second deck correspond tothe headings of a plurality of rows of the matrix, the plurality ofcolumns corresponding to the number of male players and the plurality ofrows corresponding to the number of female players;

each male player arranging his remaining cards first side down in thematrix in such manner that each of the matrix cells includes only onecard and any cards from the second deck are positioned in the matrix inthe column corresponding to his memorized indicia and row correspondingto the indicia of the card from the second deck;

each female player arranging her remaining cards first side down in thematrix in such manner that each of the matrix cells includes only onecard and any cards from the first deck are positioned in the matrix inthe row corresponding to her memorized indicia and the columncorresponding to the indicia of the card from the first deck;

the host shuffling the cards front side down in each matrix cell;

the host sorting the cards front side up in each matrix cell to revealany cards from the first deck and the second deck; and wherein anymatrix cell having a pair of cards reveals a mutual attraction betweencorresponding male and female players and any matrix cell having onlyone card reveals an admirer of the player in whose row or column thecard appears.

In another embodiment, the method of playing a partnering game comprisesthe steps of:

providing a first set of playing cards having a first indicia disposedupon a front side, the first indicia being from a first set of indicia;

providing a second set of playing cards having a second indicia disposedupon a front side, the second indicia being from a second set ofindicia;

providing a third set of playing cards having a third indicia disposedupon a front side, the third indicia being from a third set of indicia;

providing a fourth set of playing cards having a first indicia and afourth indicia disposed upon a front side, the fourth indicia being froma fourth set of indicia;

providing a fifth set of playing cards having a second indicia and afourth indicia disposed upon a front side, the fourth indicia being froma fourth set of indicia;

providing an identical design upon the back sides of each of the playingcards of the first, second, third, fourth, and fifth sets of playingcards;

positioning a plurality of players around a play area in such mannerthat the male players comprises the heads of a plurality of columns of amatrix and the female players comprise the heads of a plurality of rowsof the matrix;

selecting a game host;

the host forming three decks of cards from the first, second, third,fourth, and fifth sets of playing cards, a first deck comprising thefirst set of playing cards and the fourth set of playing cards arrangedin such manner that each card from the fourth set of playing cards ispositioned adjacent to the corresponding card from the first set ofplaying cards, a second deck comprising the second set of playing cardsand the fifth set of playing cards arranged in such manner that thateach card from the fifth set of playing cards is positioned adjacent tothe corresponding card from the second set of playing cards, and a thirddeck comprising the third set of playing cards;

dealing to each of the male players two corresponding cards from thefirst deck first side down;

dealing to each of the female players two corresponding cards from thesecond deck first side down;

dealing to each of the male players a plurality of cards from the thirddeck corresponding to the number of female players;

dealing to each of the male players a plurality of cards from the thirddeck corresponding to the number of male players;

each male player hiding one of the corresponding cards from the firstdeck;

each female player hiding one of the corresponding cards from the seconddeck;

having each male player memorize the indicia of his card from the firstdeck;

having each female player memorize the indicia of her card from thesecond deck;

having each male player select a female player of his liking and eachfemale player select a male player of her liking;

each male player arranging his cards first side down in his matrixcolumn in such manner that each of the matrix cells includes only onecard and such that his card from the first deck is positioned in thematrix in the row of the selected female player or a card from the thirddeck if no female is selected;

each female player arranging her cards first side down in her matrix rowin such manner that each of the matrix cells includes only one card andsuch that her card from the second deck is positioned in the matrix inthe column of the selected male player or a card from the third deck ifno male is selected;

the host randomly picking up each set of cards from each matrix cell;

the host randomly replacing each set of cards in the matrix cells;

the host removing all the cards from the third deck from the matrixcells to reveal any cell containing two cards; and

wherein any cell containing two cards reveals a mutual attractionbetween a male player and a female player having corresponding indicia.

In another embodiment, the method of playing a partnering game comprisesthe steps of:

providing a first set of playing cards having a first indicia disposedupon a front side, the first indicia being from a first set of indicia;

providing a second set of playing cards having a second indicia disposedupon a front side, the second indicia being from a second set ofindicia;

providing a third set of playing cards having a third indicia disposedupon a front side, the third indicia being from a third set of indicia;

providing a fourth set of playing cards having a first indicia and afourth indicia disposed upon a front side, the fourth indicia being froma fourth set of indicia;

providing a fifth set of playing cards having a second indicia and afourth indicia disposed upon a front side, the fourth indicia being froma fourth set of indicia;

providing an identical design upon the back sides of each of the playingcards of the first, second, third, fourth, and fifth sets of playingcards;

positioning a plurality of players around a play area in such mannerthat the male players comprise the heads of a plurality of columns of amatrix and the female players comprise the heads of a plurality of rowsof the matrix;

selecting a game host;

the host forming three decks of cards from the first, second, third,fourth, and fifth sets of playing cards, a first deck comprising thefirst set of playing cards and the fourth set of playing cards arrangedin such manner that each card from the fourth set of playing cards ispositioned adjacent to the corresponding card from the first set ofplaying cards, a second deck comprising the second set of playing cardsand the fifth set of playing cards arranged in such manner that thateach card from the fifth set of playing cards is positioned adjacent tothe corresponding card from the second set of playing cards, and a thirddeck comprising the third set of playing cards;

dealing to each of the male players two corresponding cards from thefirst deck first side down;

dealing to each of the female players two corresponding cards from thesecond deck first side down;

dealing to each of the male players a plurality of cards from the thirddeck corresponding to the number of female players;

dealing to each of the female players a plurality of cards from thethird deck corresponding to the number of male players;

each male player hiding one of the corresponding cards from the firstdeck;

each female player hiding one of the corresponding cards from the seconddeck;

having each male player memorize the indicia of his card from the firstdeck;

having each female player memorize the indicia of her card from thesecond deck;

having each male player select a female player of his liking and eachfemale player select a male player of her liking;

each male player arranging his cards first side down in his matrixcolumn in such manner that each of the matrix cells includes only onecard and such that his card from the first deck is positioned in thematrix in the row of the selected female player or a card from the thirddeck if no female is selected;

each female player arranging her cards first side down in her matrix rowin such manner that each of the matrix cells includes only one card andsuch that her card from the second deck is positioned in the matrix inthe column of the selected male player or a card from the third deck ifno male is selected;

each male player picking up each two card stack in each matrix cell inhis column first side down in such manner that their order is preservedand forming a first stack of cards;

each male player placing his hidden card on top of the first stack ofcards to form a second stack;

each male player binding his second stack;

the host shuffling the second stacks and redistributing the stacks tothe male players;

each male player removing the top card from the second stack and placingit first side up to form a column heading;

each male player placing each two card stack front side down in eachmatrix cell corresponding to each female player;

each female player picking up each two card stack in each matrix cell inher row first side down in such manner that their order is preserved andforming a third stack of cards;

each female player placing her hidden card on top of the third stack ofcards to form a fourth stack;

each female player binding her fourth stack;

the host shuffling the fourth stacks and redistributing the fourthstacks to the female players;

each female player removing the top card from the fourth stack andplacing it first side up to form a row heading;

each female player placing each two card stack front side down in eachmatrix cell corresponding to each male player;

the host removing from each two card stack the cards from the thirddeck; and wherein any two cards remaining in a matrix cell reveals amutual attraction and any matrix cell having one card reveals an admirerof the person corresponding to the indicia of the column or row the cardremains in.

In another embodiment, the method of playing a partnering game comprisesthe steps of: providing a means for enabling male and female players toanonymously select a player of their liking; and providing a means forverifying whether or not the selected player likes the selecting playerin such manner that only a mutually self-selected male-female coupleknows of the selection.

These together with other objects of the invention, along with thevarious features of novelty, which characterize the invention, arepointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming apart of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention,its operating advantages and the specific objects attained by its uses,reference should be added to the accompanying drawings and descriptivematter in which there is illustrated preferred embodiments of theinvention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be better understood and objects other than those setfourth above will become apparent when consideration is given to thefollowing detailed description thereof. Such description makes referenceto the annexed drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a representative card of a first set of cards.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a representative card of a second set of cards.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a representative card of a third set of cards.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to FIG. 1 through3 thereof, a new partnering game and method of playing same embodyingthe principles and the concepts of the present invention will bedescribed.

With reference to FIG. 1-3 a preferred embodiment of the partnering gameis shown including a representative card 12 of a first set of cards,hereinafter referred to as male private cards, a representative card 20of a second set of cards, hereinafter referred to as female privatecards and a representative card 30 of a third set of cards, hereinafterreferred to as bluff cards. The male private card 12 includes a frontside 13 upon which are shown disposed an indicia 14 from a first set ofindicia which in the preferred embodiment include the names of males,such as Romeo and Adam, and highlighting portion 15 including a verticallist of female names from the second set of indicia. The indicia 14 isshown disposed upon the front side 13 in a male private card top portion16 and the highlighting portion 15 is shown disposed upon the front side13 in a male private card bottom portion 17. The cards of a fourth setof cards are identical to the male private card in every respect, exceptthat in addition they have indicia at the bottom right portion 18 fromthe fourth set of indicia. The indicia of the fourth set of indicia ispreferably the words “Matrix card”.

The female card 20 is shown including a front side 21 upon which isdisposed an indicia 22 from a second set of indicia, which in thepreferred embodiment include the names of the female counterparts of themale indicia such as Juliet and Eve. A highlighting portion 23 includesa vertical list of male names from the first set of indicia. The indicia22 is disposed upon the front side 21 in a female private card bottomportion 25 and the selection portion 23 is disposed upon the front side21 in a female private card top portion 24. The cards of a fifth set ofcards are identical to the female private cards in every respect, exceptthat in addition they have indicia at the bottom right portion 26 fromthe fourth set of indicia.

A back side of the male private card 12, a back side of the femaleprivate card 20 and a back side of the bluff card 30 are identical oneto the other and include a decorative design (not shown). The maleprivate card 12, the female card 20 and the bluff card 30 aredimensionally identical and made from a material having smooth and firmsurface. The bluff card 30 is shown having a blank first face 31, butpreferably, it contains regular playing card indicia.

To play the partnering game with the five sets of cards a play area isselected such as a tabletop and the players position themselves aroundthe play area. A host for the game, who may also be a player, isselected. The game is preferably played by an equal number of male andfemale players, there being preferably at least three male players andthree female players to ensure anonymity.

The host of the game forms three decks of cards from the five sets ofcards by shuffling the male private cards and inserting behind each maleprivate card, the corresponding card from the fourth set of cardsthereby forming a first deck of cards. A second set of cards is formedby shuffling the female private cards and inserting behind each femaleprivate card, the corresponding card from the fifth set of cards. Thethird deck of cards includes the bluff cards.

Each player is giving two corresponding cards from the first deck if theplayer is male and two corresponding cards from the second deck if theplayer is female. Additionally, each player is given a plurality ofcards from the third deck, the number being equaled to the product ofmale and female players playing. Thus, by way of example, if five maleplayers and five female players are playing the partnering game, eachplayer is given twenty-five cards from the third deck. All of the cardsare given to the players such that the backsides of the cards having thedecorative design are showing.

Each player then holds in their hand, in such a manner that the otherplayer cannot see the front side of the cards, a plurality of cards. Thecards held by each player include a card from the male private cards ifthe player is male, or a card from the female private card, if theplayer is female, complemented by a plurality of cards from the set ofbluff cards equaled to the number of opposite sex players playing thegame.

Each male player memorizes the indicia appearing on his male privatecard. In like manner, each female player memorizes the indicia appearingon her female private card.

Each male player then selects a female player of his liking andpositions his male private card in such manner that when the cards heldin his hand are dealt to the female players, the male private card isdealt to the selected female player. In similar fashion, each femaleplayer selects a male player of her liking and positions her femaleprivate card in such manner that when the cards held in her hand aredealt to the male players, the female private card is dealt to theselected male player. If the male or female player is not attracted toany player then only bluff cards are dealt.

Each male player deals out the cards held in his hand to the femaleplayers as described above and in similar fashion, each female deals outthe cards held in her hand to the male player. Each player then has anew set of cards.

The male players then give the host of the game their card from thefourth set of cards and the female players give the host their card fromthe fifth set of cards in such manner that the players do not see thefront side of the cards. The host shuffles and arranges the cards fromthe fourth set of cards into a matrix column heading row and the cardsfrom the fifth set of cards into the matrix row heading column. Eachmale player arranges his new set of cards with his remaining bluff cardsin such manner that upon placing one card in each matrix cell front sidedown any female private cards received from a female player arepositionable in the matrix in the column corresponding to his card fromthe fourth set of cards and the row corresponding to the indicia of thefemale private card. In similar fashion, each female player arranges hernew set of cards with her remaining bluff cards in such manner that uponplacing one card in each matrix cell front side down any male privatecards received from a male player are positionable in the matrix in therow corresponding to her card from the fifth set of cards and the columncorresponding to the indicia of the male private card.

The host of the game then shuffles the cards front side down in eachmatrix cell, sorts the cards front side up to reveal any male or femaleprivate cards, and places any such cards back in the matrix cell. Anymatrix cell having a pair of cards reveals a mutual attraction and anymatrix cell having only one-card reveals an admirer of the player inwhose row or column the card appears.

In another preferred embodiment of the partnering game, the male playersarrange themselves about the play area in a line so that each maleplayer represents a matrix column heading. In similar fashion, thefemale players arrange themselves about the play area in a line so thateach female player represents a matrix row heading. The host of the gameforms three decks of cards from the five sets of cards by shuffling themale private cards and inserting behind each male private card, thecorresponding card from the fourth set of cards, thereby forming a firstdesk of cards. A second deck of cards is formed by shuffling the femaleprivate cards and inserting behind each female private card, thecorresponding card from the fifth set of cards. A third deck of cardsincludes the bluff cards.

Each player is given two corresponding cards from the first deck if theplayer is male and two corresponding cards from the second deck if theplayer is female. Additionally, each player is given a plurality ofcards from the third deck, equaling the number of opposite sex playersplaying the game. Thus, by way of example, if five male players and fourfemale players are playing the partnering game, each male player isgiven four cards from the third deck and each female player is givenfive cards from the third deck. All of the cards are given to theplayers such that the backsides of the cards having the decorativedesign are showing.

Each player then hides his or her card from the fourth or fifth set ofcards for subsequent use in the game.

Each male player memorizes the indicia appearing on his male privatecard. In like manner, each female player memorizes the indicia appearingon her female private card.

Each male player then selects a female player of his liking andpositions his male private card in such manner that when the cards heldin his hand are positioned in the matrix cells corresponding to hiscolumn, the male private card is positioned in the row corresponding tothe female player of his liking. In similar fashion, each female playerselects a male player of her liking and positions her female privatecard in such manner that when the cards held in her hand are positionedin the matrix cells corresponding to her row, the female private card ispositioned in the column corresponding to the male player of her liking.If the male or female player is not attracted to any player then onlybluff cards are positioned in the matrix cells.

In a first mode of play designed to reveal only mutual attractions, eachmale and female player then positions, back side up, his or her cards inthe matrix cells, each matrix cell containing two cards. The host of thegame then randomly picks up each two-card stack, back side up, to form adeck in his hand. The host then randomly places, backside up, eachtwo-card stack back in the matrix cells. With the removal by the host ofall of the bluff cards from each two-card stack, any stack containingtwo cards reveals or confirms a mutual attraction between the male andfemale players whose indicia appear on the cards.

Alternatively, in a second mode of play designed to reveal both mutualattraction and admirers, each male player picks up all of the cards inthe matrix cells corresponding to his column, back side up, in suchmanner that the order of two-card stacks is not destroyed, as by firstpicking up the two-card stack closest to himself and progressing in adirection away from himself. To the top of each resulting deck, eachmale player adds his card from the fourth set of cards backside up andbinds the stack as with a rubber band. The host collects the stacks fromthe male players, shuffles the stacks and returns a stack to each maleplayer.

Each male player removes the top card from his deck and places it frontside up in front of him and then places each two-card stack front sidedown in the matrix cells corresponding to each female player in hiscolumn.

In similar fashion, each female player picks up all of the cards in thematrix cells corresponding to her row back side up in such manner thatthe order of two-card stacks is not destroyed, as by first picking upthe two-card stack closest to herself and progressing in a directionaway from herself. To the top of each resulting deck, each female playeradds her card from the fifth set of cards backside up and binds thestack as with a rubber band. The host collects the stacks from thefemale players, shuffles the stacks and returns a stack to each femaleplayer.

Each female player removes the top card from her deck and places itfront side up in front of her and then places each two-card stack frontside down in the matrix cells corresponding to each male player in herrow.

The host of the game then removes from each two card stack all of thecards from the third set of cards. Any two-card stack confirms orreveals a mutual attraction and any matrix cell having one card revealsan admirer to the person designated by the indicia of the column or rowthe card appears in.

In another preferred embodiment of the partnering game, the host of thegame forms three decks of cards from the five sets of cards by shufflingthe male private cards, thereby forming a first deck of cards. A seconddeck of cards is formed by shuffling the female private cards. A thirddeck of cards includes the bluff cards.

Each male player is given a male private card from the first deck ofcards and each female player is given a female private card from thesecond deck of cards. Each male player memorizes the indicia appearingon his male private card. In like manner, each female player memorizesthe indicia appearing on her female private card. Additionally, eachplayer is given a plurality of cards from the third deck of cards, eachmale player receiving from the third deck cards equaling the number offemale players playing the game and each female player receiving fromthe third deck cards equaling the number of male players playing thegame. Each player holds his or her cards in such manner that the otherplayers cannot see the front sides of the cards.

Each male player then selects a female player of his liking andpositions his male private card in such manner that when the cards heldin his hand are dealt to the female players, the male private card isdealt to the selected female player. In similar fashion, each femaleplayer selects a male player of her liking and positions her femaleprivate card in such manner that when the cards held in her hand aredealt to the male players, the female private card is dealt to theselected male player. If the male or female player is not attracted toany player then only bluff cards are dealt.

After the cards are dealt by the male and female players, each playerhas a new hand consisting of five cards which may or may not include amale or female private card. Each player then sorts through their handand retrieves all female private cards if the player is male, and allmale private cards, if the player is female. Each player then highlightstheir memorized indicia upon the highlighting portion of each retrievedcard with an erasable marker in such manner that the other playerscannot see the highlighted indicia. If a player does not retrieve a maleor female private card from his or her hand, he or she must bluff thathe or she is highlighting their indicia upon a card.

Each player then places their hand front side down in the center of theplay area. The host of the game then shuffles the stack front side downthen with the front sides showing, removes all the cards from the thirdset of cards. The host further sorts out any two cards sharing identicalindicia thereon. Two such coupled cards confirm or reveal a mutualattraction between the male and female player corresponding to theindicia. Any non-coupled male or female private cards reveal admirers ofthe player whose indicia appears in the selection portion of the card.

For each of the above variations of the partnering game, the occurrenceof a pairing of indicia corresponding to a famous couple, such as Romeoand Juliet, reveals a “magical” match. This type of match is “magical”because it is a rare occurrence.

As to a further discussion of the manner of usage and operation of thepresent invention, the same should be apparent from the abovedescription. Accordingly, no further discussion relating to the mannerof usage and operation will be provided.

With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized thatthe optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of the invention, toinclude variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and mannerof operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obviousto one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to thoseillustrated in the drawings and described in the specification areintended to be encompassed by the present invention.

Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of theprinciples of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications andchanges will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is notdesired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operationshown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications andequivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of theinvention.

1. A partnering game comprising: a first set of playing cards havingfirst indicia disposed upon a front side, the first indicia being from afirst set of indicia; a second set of playing cards having secondindicia disposed upon a front side, the second indicia being from asecond set of indicia; a third set of playing cards having third indiciadisposed upon a front side, the third indicia being from a third set ofindicia; and wherein each of the cards from the first set of playingcards, the second set of playing cards, and the third set of playingcards further comprises a back side having a design disposed thereon. 2.The partnering game of claim 1 further comprising a fourth set ofplaying cards having a first indicia and a fourth indicia disposed upona front side, the fourth indicia being from a fourth set of indicia; afifth set of playing cards having a second indicia and a fourth indiciadisposed upon a front side.
 3. The partnering game of claim 2 whereinthe front side of each of the playing cards of the first and fourth setsof playing cards further comprise a top portion and a bottom portion,the first indicia being disposed in the top portion, and wherein thebottom portion further comprises a highlighting portion.
 4. Thepartnering game of claim 2 wherein the front side of each of the playingcards of the second and fifth sets of playing cards further comprise atop portion and a bottom portion, the second indicia being disposed inthe bottom portion, and wherein the top portion further comprises ahighlighting portion.
 5. A method of playing a partnering gamecomprising the steps of: providing a first set of playing cards having afirst indicia disposed upon a front side, the first indicia being from afirst set of indicia; providing a second set of playing cards having asecond indicia disposed upon a front side, the second indicia being froma second set of indicia; providing a third set of playing cards having athird indicia disposed upon a front side, the third indicia being from athird set of indicia; providing an identical design upon the back sidesof each of the playing cards of the first, second, and third sets ofplaying cards; distributing to each male player a card from the firstset of playing cards and to each female player a card from the secondset of playing cards; having each male and female player memorize theindicia disposed upon his card; distributing to each male player aplurality of cards from the third set of playing cards equal in numberto the number of female players playing the game; distributing to eachfemale player a plurality of cards from the third set of playing cardsequal in number to the number of male players playing the game; havingeach player hold the distributed cards in such manner that the otherplayers cannot see the front sides of the distributed cards; having eachmale player select a female player of his liking and each female playerselect a male player of her liking; having each male player form a firstcard hand in such manner that when the cards in the first card hand aredealt to the female players, the card from the first set of playingcards is dealt to the selected female player or a card from the thirdset of playing cards if no female is selected; having each female playerform a second card hand in such manner that when the cards in the secondcard hand are dealt to the male players, the card from the second set ofplaying cards is dealt to the selected male player or a card from thethird set of playing cards if no male is selected; having each maleplayer deal his first card hand to the female players; having eachfemale player deal her second card hand to the male players; having eachmale player retrieve from his dealt hand any cards from the second setof playing cards; having each female player retrieve from her dealt handany cards from the first set of playing cards; having each male playerhaving at least one card from the second set of playing cards highlightin a front side highlighting portion of each card from the second set ofplaying cards his memorized indicia; having each female player having atleast one card from the first set of playing cards highlight in a frontside highlighting portion of each card from the first set of playingcards her memorized indicia; having each male or female player having nocards from either the second or first sets of playing cards respectivelybluff the highlighting of his or her memorized indicia upon a card fromthe third set of playing cards; combining and shuffling all of theplaying cards front side down; removing the cards from the third set ofplaying cards from the shuffled cards; sorting the shuffled cards toreveal any two cards having identical indicia; and sorting the shuffledcards to reveal any card having dissimilar indicia.
 6. A method ofplaying a partnering game comprising the steps of: providing a first setof playing cards having a first indicia disposed upon a front side, thefirst indicia being from a first set of indicia; providing a second setof playing cards having a second indicia disposed upon a front side, thesecond indicia being from a second set of indicia; providing a third setof playing cards having a third indicia disposed upon a front side, thethird indicia being from a third set of indicia; providing a fourth setof playing cards having a first indicia and a fourth indicia disposedupon a front side, the fourth indicia being from a fourth set ofindicia; providing a fifth set of playing cards having a second indiciaand a fourth indicia disposed upon a front side; the fourth indiciabeing from a fourth set of indicia; providing an identical design uponthe back sides of each of the playing cards of the first, second, third,fourth, and fifth set of playing cards; selecting a play area;positioning a plurality of players around the play area; selecting agame host; the host forming three decks of cards from the first, second,third, fourth and fifth set of playing cards, a first deck comprisingthe first set of playing cards and the fourth set of playing cardsarranged in such manner that each card from the fourth set of playingcards is positioned adjacent to the corresponding card from the firstset of playing cards, a second deck comprising the second set of playingcards and the fifth set of playing cards arranged in such manner thateach card from the fifth set of playing cards is positioned adjacent tothe corresponding card from the second set of playing cards, and a thirddeck comprising the third set of playing cards; dealing to each of aplurality of male players two corresponding cards from the first deckfirst side down; dealing to each of a plurality of female players twocorresponding cards from the second deck first side down; dealing toeach player a plurality of cards from the third deck equal to theproduct of the number of male players and female players; having eachmale player memorize the indicia of his card from the first deck; havingeach female player memorize the indicia of her card from the seconddeck; having each player hold the distributed cards in such manner thatthe other players cannot see the front sides of the distributed cards;having each male player form a first card hand comprising one card fromthe first deck and a plurality of cards from the third deck, the numberof cards in the first card hand being equal to the number of femaleplayers plus one; having each female player form a second card handcomprising one card from the second deck and a plurality of cards fromthe third deck, the number of cards in the second card hand being equalto the number of male players plus one; having each male player select afemale player of his liking and each female player select a male playerof her liking; having each male player position his card from the firstdeck in his first card hand in such manner that when the cards in thefirst card hand are dealt to the female players, the card from the firstdeck is dealt to the selected female player or a card from the thirddeck if no female is selected; having each female player position hercard from the second deck in her second card hand in such manner thatwhen the cards in the second card hand are dealt to the male players,the card from the second deck is dealt to the selected male player or acard from the third deck if no male is selected; having each male playerdeal his first card hand to the female players; having each femaleplayer deal her second card hand to the male players; each male playergiving his card from the fourth set from the first deck to the host andeach female player giving her card from the fifth set from the seconddeck to the host to form a heading deck; the host shuffling andarranging the heading deck in such manner that the cards from the firstdeck correspond to the headings of a plurality of columns of a matrixand the cards from the second deck correspond to the headings of aplurality of rows of the matrix, the plurality of columns correspondingto the number of male players and the plurality of rows corresponding tothe number of female players; each male player arranging his remainingcards first side down in the matrix in such manner that each of thematrix cells includes only one card and any cards from the second deckare positioned in the matrix in the column corresponding to hismemorized indicia and row corresponding to the indicia of the card fromthe second deck; each female player arranging her remaining cards firstside down in the matrix in such manner that each of the matrix cellsincludes only one card and any cards from the first deck are positionedin the matrix in the row corresponding to her memorized indicia and thecolumn corresponding to the indicia of the card from the first deck; thehost shuffling the cards front side down in each matrix cell; the hostsorting the cards front side up in each matrix cell to reveal any cardsfrom the first deck and the second deck; and wherein any matrix cellhaving a pair of cards reveals a mutual attraction between correspondingmale and female players and any matrix cell having only one card revealsan admirer of the player in whose row or column the card appears.
 7. Amethod of playing a partnering game comprising the steps of: providing afirst set of playing cards having a first indicia disposed upon a frontside, the first indicia being from a first set of indicia; providing asecond set of playing cards having a second indicia disposed upon afront side, the second indicia being from a second set of indicia;providing a third set of playing cards having a third indicia disposedupon a front side, the third indicia being from a third set of indicia;providing a fourth set of playing cards having a first indicia and afourth indicia disposed upon a front side, the fourth indicia being froma fourth set of indicia; providing a fifth set of playing cards having asecond indicia and a fourth indicia disposed upon a front side, thefourth indicia being from a fourth set of indicia; providing anidentical design upon the back sides of each of the playing cards of thefirst, second, third, fourth, and fifth sets of playing cards;positioning a plurality of players around a play area in such mannerthat the male players comprises the heads of a plurality of columns of amatrix and the female players comprise the heads of a plurality of rowsof the matrix; selecting a game host; the host forming three decks ofcards from the first, second, third, fourth, and fifth sets of playingcards, a first deck comprising the first set of playing cards and thefourth set of playing cards arranged in such manner that each card fromthe fourth set of playing cards is positioned adjacent to thecorresponding card from the first set of playing cards, a second deckcomprising the second set of playing cards and the fifth set of playingcards arranged in such manner that that each card from the fifth set ofplaying cards is positioned adjacent to the corresponding card from thesecond set of playing cards, and a third deck comprising the third setof playing cards; dealing to each of the male players two correspondingcards from the first deck first side down; dealing to each of the femaleplayers two corresponding cards from the second deck first side down;dealing to each of the male players a plurality of cards from the thirddeck corresponding to the number of female players; dealing to each ofthe male players a plurality of cards from the third deck correspondingto the number of male players; each male player hiding one of thecorresponding cards from the first deck; each female player hiding oneof the corresponding cards from the second deck; having each male playermemorize the indicia of his card from the first deck; having each femaleplayer memorize the indicia of her card from the second deck; havingeach male player select a female player of his liking and each femaleplayer select a male player of her liking; each male player arranginghis cards first side down in his matrix column in such manner that eachof the matrix cells includes only one card and such that his card fromthe first deck is positioned in the matrix in the row of the selectedfemale player or a card from the third deck if no female is selected;each female player arranging her cards first side down in her matrix rowin such manner that each of the matrix cells includes only one card andsuch that her card from the second deck is positioned in the matrix inthe column of the selected male player or a card from the third deck ifno male is selected; the host randomly picking up each set of cards fromeach matrix cell; the host randomly replacing each set of cards in thematrix cells; the host removing all the cards from the third deck fromthe matrix cells to reveal any cell containing two cards; and whereinany cell containing two cards reveals a mutual attraction between a maleplayer and a female player having corresponding indicia.
 8. A method ofplaying a partnering game comprising the steps of: providing a first setof playing cards having a first indicia disposed upon a front side, thefirst indicia being from a first set of indicia; providing a second setof playing cards having a second indicia disposed upon a front side, thesecond indicia being from a second set of indicia; providing a third setof playing cards having a third indicia disposed upon a front side, thethird indicia being from a third set of indicia; providing a fourth setof playing cards having a first indicia and a fourth indicia disposedupon a front side, the fourth indicia being from a fourth set ofindicia; providing a fifth set of playing cards having a second indiciaand a fourth indicia disposed upon a front side, the fourth indiciabeing from a fourth set of indicia; providing an identical design uponthe back sides of each of the playing cards of the first, second, third,fourth, and fifth sets of playing cards; positioning a plurality ofplayers around a play area in such manner that the male players comprisethe heads of a plurality of columns of a matrix and the female playerscomprise the heads of a plurality of rows of the matrix; selecting agame host; the host forming three decks of cards from the first, second,third, fourth, and fifth sets of playing cards, a first deck comprisingthe first set of playing cards and the fourth set of playing cardsarranged in such manner that each card from the fourth set of playingcards is positioned adjacent to the corresponding card from the firstset of playing cards, a second deck comprising the second set of playingcards and the fifth set of playing cards arranged in such manner thatthat each card from the fifth set of playing cards is positionedadjacent to the corresponding card from the second set of playing cards,and a third deck comprising the third set of playing cards; dealing toeach of the male players two corresponding cards from the first deckfirst side down; dealing to each of the female players two correspondingcards from the second deck first side down; dealing to each of the maleplayers a plurality of cards from the third deck corresponding to thenumber of female players; dealing to each of the female players aplurality of cards from the third deck corresponding to the number ofmale players; each male player hiding one of the corresponding cardsfrom the first deck; each female player hiding one of the correspondingcards from the second deck; having each male player memorize the indiciaof his card from the first deck; having each female player memorize theindicia of her card from the second deck; having each male player selecta female player of his liking and each female player select a maleplayer of her liking; each male player arranging his cards first sidedown in his matrix column in such manner that each of the matrix cellsincludes only one card and such that his card from the first deck ispositioned in the matrix in the row of the selected female player or acard from the third deck if no female is selected; each female playerarranging her cards first side down in her matrix row in such mannerthat each of the matrix cells includes only one card and such that hercard from the second deck is positioned in the matrix in the column ofthe selected male player or a card from the third deck if no male isselected; each male player picking up each two card stack in each matrixcell in his column first side down in such manner that their order ispreserved and forming a first stack of cards; each male player placinghis hidden card on top of the first stack of cards to form a secondstack; each male player binding his second stack; the host shuffling thesecond stacks and redistributing the stacks to the male players; eachmale player removing the top card from the second stack and placing itfirst side up to form a column heading; each male player placing eachtwo card stack front side down in each matrix cell corresponding to eachfemale player; each female player picking up each two card stack in eachmatrix cell in her row first side down in such manner that their orderis preserved and forming a third stack of cards; each female playerplacing her hidden card on top of the third stack of cards to form afourth stack; each female player binding her fourth stack; the hostshuffling the fourth stacks and redistributing the fourth stacks to thefemale players; each female player removing the top card from the fourthstack and placing it first side up to form a row heading; each femaleplayer placing each two card stack front side down in each matrix cellcorresponding to each male player; the host removing from each two cardstack the cards from the third deck; and wherein any two cards remainingin a matrix cell reveals a mutual attraction and any matrix cell havingone card reveals an admirer of the person corresponding to the indiciaof the column or row the card remains in.
 9. A method of playing apartnering game comprising the steps of: providing a means for enablingmale and female players to anonymously select a player of their liking;and providing a means for verifying whether or not the selected playerlikes the selecting player in such manner that only a mutuallyself-selected male-female couple knows of the selection.